DIY IVs and Dreadlocks

Glucose

Glucose (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Flower Child has been sick for four days now, koalaed to me since Sunday morning.  Life with a medical needs kiddo is…interesting.  It’s never just a sniffle.  Forget about secondary sinus infections, we see things like seizures.  And pleurisy–which is extra special, because she doesn’t cough, so that type of diagnosis is always a sucker punch delivered in a crowded ER at 2AM.   So, I’ve been working on trying to keep her hydrated and home.  She dehydrates quickly, hence my not so funny when you live it DIY IV joke.  Pedialyte and lollypops.  Same as a glucose drip, no?  I’m hopeful at the moment, today has been better than the last few days, fever sticking to low grade so far, and she ate a little bit.  Just heard from the nurse at the pediatrician’s office, results from the flu swab are back, and it isn’t the flu.

Are you kidding me?  This isn’t even the flu?  Just one of several viruses making the rounds right now.  For my Flower Child, a virus that would make another child sick for a few days leaves her scary laid out for much longer.  It isn’t like I actually need to sleep or anything.  Really, an hour or two is more than enough. What’s that?  You want to know why I go through 5 espressos and 12 cups of tea each day?

Since today has been better, and I know not to make any assumptions for tomorrow, I figured it was an opportunity to hack through wash her hair.

Dreadlocks machen. Mit Hilfe eines Hundehaarkamms

Dreadlocks machen. Mit Hilfe eines Hundehaarkamms (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Rapunzel long hair and extended periods of time in bed adds up to dreadlocks, forget Goldilocks.  I just spent over an hour detangling her hair. >>that photo is not Flower Child, just illustrating her hair.

Who wants to guess how much writing I’ve gotten done?  *insert cynical laugh here*  There went my 1000 words a day streak.  Though I have kept going, with a much lower word count.  I wake up every morning convinced I should be able to be more productive.  I go to bed each night chastising myself for a paltry word count.  I’m not losing two hours a day doing drop off and pick up, she’s certainly not chatting or wanting anything other than to be next to me, but this hyper-vigilant watching and listening is exhausting.  Very hard to immerse yourself in fantasy land when you’ve got a little person burning, shaking, and whimpering next to you.  So I’m on a break from the romance, working on a new short.  Progress is slow, and it’s an angry piece (shocked?) but I like how it’s taking shape.

I could write for 30 minutes or so now until I go dog walk, but I think I’m going to escape to my happy place instead.  It’s almost beach season, isn’t it?

Bora Bora

Bora Bora (Photo credit: Benoit Mahe)

26 comments

  3. So sorry that Flower Child is struggling through this latest bout of crud. The hyper-vigilance is totally understood, and I have been a major sufferer for the last few months myself. I really need to get over it, too. So many things that need to be done.

    Like

    Reply

  5. My son had a similar bout of something with 103 degree fevers, sore throat and rasping cough. Thought it was pneumonia but same deal. It wasn’t even the flu. “Just a virus.” These are some badasss virus germs. Try to sleep when Fower Child does. So sorry she is ailing. Remember to take care of you.

    Like

    Reply

    1. Thank you. 🙂 I hope your son is fully recovered now. I’m just hoping to get her past this while keeping it limited to “just a virus.” Blech.

      Sleep? Stop talking dirty to me, I’m a married woman!

      Like

      Reply

  7. I could not quite bring myself to “like” this post, but can definitely relate to much of it.

    Ok so I’m not a writer, but I hereby grant you the same sick, personal, holiday and vacation days you deserve in any of the other roles you play in life. Not that you actually ever get them, but well… you deserve them, so no guilt when the pages don’t add up as you wish they would during these kind of times. I love that you have a WIP befitting current circumstances. 😀

    Oh FC. I hate that she’s struggling so much. I hope that she’s starting to turn the corner. I understand the “little bug= knockout problems” thing and just holding your breath till you are dropping from exhaustion.

    Like

    Reply

  8. I don’t know if I should say yea its not the flu? BUT this poor child 😦 Getting knocked down so hard ❤ I think lollygagging around on that Island would do us all wonders, How can we make it happen? I can relate to the hair, winter seems to be harder on my hair, scarves and coats, cause friction and knots! that picture made me lol, we need SUMMER!!

    Like

    Reply

    1. I think we would be excellent lollygaggers, we need to test the theory 😀

      Did you hear me cursing myself while I worked through those knots? A smart mommy would get her a cute pixie cut…lol

      Like

      Reply

  12. Perfect…I’ve just got some Central American bug, and I’m supposed to be going to Granda, Nicaragua. I never get sick, and here is this. Mmmmmm. Weird world…weird, weird, world.
    Later….

    Like

    Reply

Join the Discussion

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.